O is for... Ordinary

Oh sure, I know we're all special and God loves us very much, but I think we're just 'ordinary folk' too.  I am certainly not one of those Homeschooler Supermoms that rarely seems to need sleep - you know, those amazing women that can sew, knit, can vegetables, bake bread, tend the garden and make their own cheese and butter while listening to their children recite their Latin lessons.  All before breakfast.  Not even close.  And my kids aren't those exceptional students that get up before dawn to tend to all their chores and practice two of the five instruments they play, so they can get an early start on their Calculus lesson and write a few chapters of their third full-length novel... at the age of 7-1/2.  None of those in this house.

Nope, we're pretty ordinary.  I count it a good day when I can get a couple loads of laundry done, pay the bills on time, and find something for dinner, and still teach a history lesson or grade some math.  It's a special occasion when all three kids get up on their own before 9am.  I would take their temperature if they got up early because they enjoyed their schoolwork so much.

An ordinary school day at our house this past school year went more like this:

• I see my hubby off to work and then enjoy a leisurely cup or three of coffee while checking my email and message boards, and other putzing around on the computer.
• at about 8:45 I realize that the kids should already be up, but they're probably not; and that I forgot to print out the notebook pages we'll need for our composer study.  So I holler up the stairs and tell the kids to get up and get breakfast, then frantically start printing the pages, while wrapping up the last couple of things I was doing on the internet.  Sometimes I would realize partway through printing that I was out of printer ink...
• if all went reasonably well, we would get started with the schoolwork around 9:15 or 9:20, with me muttering to myself that "we're supposed to start at 9, we're late again".  On the plus side, once we did get going, we usually could stick to the tasks at hand until lunchtime with only minor interruptions.
• one of the boys would alert the household to their imminent need for lunch and we would decide what was on the menu.  The kids are often allowed to watch TV or play video games for a bit once they've eaten lunch.
• at least half the time, at least one of us would lose track of time and take a too long lunch break. But once we were back at it, the afternoon's schoolwork generally went fairly smoothly.  
• by late afternoon, I was ready for a nap, and as kids finished their schoolwork and chores they would have some free time until dad came home from work.
• at dinner dad would usually ask everyone what schoolwork they'd done, and sadly, the conversation usually had to include a discussion about how far behind target someone was in a subject they didn't care for.   

Oh, and on the really good days, the kids were dressed (in real clothes, not their pajamas) by the time Dad got home from work.

Not every day looked like that.  Some were far worse. 

The best part is that while the skeleton of our "ordinary" day looks mundane and chaotic, it included a lot of learning experiences, opportunities, conversations, and just plain silliness that can't possibly be scheduled.

That's my kind of ordinary!

What kinds of things happen on the "ordinary" days in your homeschool? Leave a comment and let me know! I'd be extraordinarily pleased if you'd follow my blog as well.

Blogging through the Alphabet is a weekly link-up hosted by "Ben and Me". Please visit to join in and to see what thoughts this week's letter has prompted for other bloggers.

    

This post is also linked at Hip Homeschool Hop and Back to School Monday.  Please use the links to visit those sites as well!

This post is also linked to the A Day In Our Homeschool Round-up (February 19, 2016) on the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog.

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